Ever Ater
by Yami White Rain
Summary: Did you draw up visitation rights?" Connor asked casually. "True, it's normally reserved for kids. But I've learned not to take anything for granted recently." Angel and Connor post-NFA.


**Ever After**  
**By:** White Rain  
**Disclaimer:** I do not own Angel.  
**Genre:** Gen  
**Characters/Pairing:** Connor and Angel  
**Summary:** _"Did you draw up visitation rights?" Connor asked casually. "True, it's normally reserved for kids. But I've learned not to take anything for granted recently."_ Angel and Connor post-NFA.

* * *

**november;**  
Connor was at Denny's, finishing up some math homework, when Angel slid in the chair in front of him.

"Is the world about to end again?" Connor attempted to keep his voice neutral because he wasn't quite sure if he meant to sound sarcastic, angry or relieved.

"Probably somewhere," Angel said, and then awkwardly, "I just wanted to give you a birthday present."

Connor set down his pencil and lifted his head to give Angel a look. "It's not my birthday."

"It is," Angel said. "Or at least your first one. If you tell me your new birthday, I could -"

He sounded so anguished that Connor couldn't help but take pity on him.

"Do you get out? At all?"

Angel gave him a confused look. "What?"

"Who in the right mind turns down having two birthdays when presents are involved?" Connor asked.

"I just want to respect your boundaries," Angel said, sounding like he'd read that line from a parenting book.

"I have much to teach you," Connor told him, very seriously, and he almost felt bad about the hopeful way Angel was looking at him. Almost. "The first being two birthdays are allowed - nay _encouraged_ - if presents are involved."

**december;**  
"End of semester tests," Connor told Angel without looking up from the table he was at in the student lounge.

"I could buy you coffee?" Angel offered.

"I wouldn't hate that," Connor said.

**january;**  
"Do you miss the sun?" Connor asked after they'd walked together in silence for about half an hour in part because the silence was making him anxious but mostly because he wanted to know more about Angel even if he didn't know where to begin.

"I do," Angel said. He stopped walking. Connor halted and turned around. Angel was looking at him with such intensity that he nearly shivered. "Mostly it's the limitations."

Connor licked his lips. "Like what?"

Angel didn't look away. "When you were born, I knew there were things I wouldn't be able to do for you."

"And then I was - "

"Yeah."

Connor turned around and began to walk away. The tension from his muscles only started to fade away after he heard the soft sounds of Angel's footsteps following him for several blocks.

**february;**  
"Did you draw up visitation rights?" Connor asked casually. "True, it's normally reserved for kids. But I've learned not to take anything for granted recently."

"No," Angel said awkwardly and he looked like he wanted to sit down next to Connor. "It's just a way to see you."

"There's this thing at school next month," Connor said as he looked down at his soda and began to slowly swirl his straw. "Only it doesn't fall on the tenth of next month. I just don't want to ask you to break any laws I'm unaware of."

He felt Angel slide down next to him. "When is it?"

Connor squeezed his straw tightly as he said, making sure his voice was light, "It's during the day."

"Doesn't matter," Angel said and Connor could feel Angel's eyes on him. "When is it?"

"I'm not going to let you die for a dumb school thing," Connor said. "I was just being annoying. Need to practice on something so I'm not rusty for when I go back home to my sisters."

"Connor," Angel said and he sounded so _parental_ that Connor couldn't help but look at him. "If you don't want me to be there, that's one thing. But if you do, tell me."

"First of next month," Connor said in spite of himself. He shoved himself away from the table and walked away, not really caring that he knocked over his drink into Angel's lap.

**march;**  
"I saw you," Connor said. "Nice use of shade."

"I've had practice," Angel said.

Connor scooted over and Angel picked up on the invitation to sit down next to him on the bench. "Don't do it again."

"You didn't like that I was there?"

Connor couldn't hold in his flinch. Angel's hand hovered over Connor's shoulder for a moment before jerking his arm away.

"It's just not worth the risk," Connor said, staring fixedly at the sidewalk as he set his hands on the bench and dug his fingers into the wood. It felt like someone else was speaking through him. "I don't even know how you made it through that night. I don't even know if I want to know. I just don't want you dead. Especially not for me."

"Connor - "

Connor wrenched his head up. "You act like you want to give everything up for me but you're never there and you never can be if you up and die for really stupid reasons." Angel opened his mouth but Connor held up his hand and said quietly, "Don't say anything. I'm still trying to figure out how I feel about everything." He refused to look at Angel as he continued. "Sometimes I don't even know who I am anymore."

Angel set his hand on top of one of Connor's that was clenching so tightly to the bench that it was starting to hurt. Connor couldn't relax, but he didn't push Angel away either.

**april;**  
"It's still warm," Connor said, pointing to the cup of coffee he'd ordered for Angel. "But I don't know if you drink coffee."

"I do," Angel said as he sat down.

"Do you like it?" Connor asked.

"Dunno if I'd say that," Angel replied. "It keeps me awake during the morning though."

Connor leaned forward. "What do you like?"

"To eat?" Angel asked.

"I know you drink blood," Connor said. "I've read my share of Anne Rice novels."

Angel grimaced.

"Like that," Connor said and at Angel's confused look, he elaborated, "what you like in general. Or dislike. Whatever."

"Black is my favorite color," Angel offered.

"Wow," Connor said. "We really have to work on your conversational skills."

"Don't plan on dying any time soon," Angel said.

"I took communications in high school," Connor said and he felt tension he wasn't even aware of melt from his body. "I should put it to use."

**may;**  
"These are my sisters," Connor said casually as he slid a picture of them across the table. Pain and hunger both flickered across Angel's face briefly. "Samantha is the younger one and Elizabeth is the older one."

"They're very pretty?" Angel threw out as he stared at the photo.

Connor scowled. "Don't remind me." He shook his head once. "They're kind of annoying but they're mine. It's something I can count on."

Angel looked up. "I'm glad."

"Keep it," Connor said, shooting a short look at the photograph. At Angel's look, he swallowed heavily and muttered, "Just don't get all sappy on me. Just giving it to you as a heads up."

Angel blinked at him several times.

"Going to go home for the summer." He shrugged. "Figured you might follow me there."

**june;**  
"Sometimes," Connor said abruptly, pushing his plate to the side, "I wonder if I am cut out for that Champion thing."

Angel didn't say anything, and for that, Connor was grateful.

"There's this mind set I go to when I fight." Connor wished he had something to do with his hands. "I don't want to go back to it."

"I'm not saying it'll be easy," Angel said, watching Connor carefully and seemed to chose his words just as carefully. "But it's something that you can control."

"Could you show me?" Connor asked. "If I decide I want to?"

"Yes."

**july;**  
They were walking through the park where Connor used to play in as a child. "I liked the swings best as a kid." Connor didn't have to look at Angel to know he was hoarding the information like a starved man did free food. "It was close as I could get to flying." Connor paused and said as casually as he could manage, "How did you get out of that fight alive?"

"I don't know," Angel said. "I came to and wasn't dead."

"You didn't fight alone, did you?" Connor asked. He hadn't meant for it to sound accusatory, but a not so small part of him wanted to yell at Angel for putting him through that and it was getting harder to shove that part of him aside.

"No," Angel said.

"What happened to them?" Connor asked.

"Dead," Angel said.

"Was it everyone?" Connor forced himself to look at Angel in the eyes and not flinch away from the raw pain in them. "Are you alone?"

"Not completely," Angel replied.

Connor was glad he had nothing else to say because he couldn't find his voice.

**august;**  
"Blue or green?" Connor asked, holding up two notebooks.

"Blue," Angel said.

Connor set it in the shopping cart. "Do Champions have homework? Because right now considering other options is sounding like a really good idea."

"You're not dropping out," Angel said with casual authority that Connor was starting to think he should discourage.

"Homework causes me pain," Connor said. "And I don't get enough sleep during midterms and none at all during finals. It really can't be good for my health."

"Suffer," Angel said shortly.

**september;**  
"You can come in," Connor said, taking off his coat and throwing it on the couch just to see if Angel would scold him.

"I need an invitation," Angel said. He was, as usual, watching Connor's every movement, but he didn't seem to notice anything especially about the coat.

"Come in," Connor said and decided not to think about the fact he was sort of disappointed. He asked, even though he remembered the answer, "Do you need one every time?"

"No," Angel said, walking into the apartment. "Now I need to show you how to take back the invitation. Just in case."

"Angelus." Connor heard his voice shake slightly.

"Just in case," Angel repeated. He walked over to Connor and, with none of the usual hesitation that he usually did, set his hand on Connor's shoulder.

Connor leaned into the touch and closed his eyes.

**october;**  
"You're late," Connor said and looked down at his watch and then back up at Angel. "By one hundred and sixty four hours."

"Things came up," Angel said, apologetic. "I really couldn't get away." He sat down next to Connor on the couch. "I tried to get away in time."

"You really take all the fun out of guilt trips," Connor said and looked down at the carpet.

"I didn't mean to worry you," Angel said.

Connor rested against Angel but still didn't look at him. "You know, you won't actually go to jail if you fail to follow the whole once a month thing. Just call ahead or something like a normal person."

"I can do that," Angel said.

"And you're also supposed to bring back presents to buy back my good favor when you don't show up when you're supposed to," Connor told him.

"I am?" Angel asked. "What do you want?"

"You also take the fun out of manipulation," Connor said. "It's an art form and you mock it by believing every word I say."

"Are you saying I should encourage manipulation?" Angel asked.

"It's only taken you eleven months to start joking back," Connor said and when he began to move away, Angel's arm tightened considerably for a second. Connor pretended like he was just shifting into a more comfortable position.

"I've got a good teacher," Angel said.

"Girl," Connor said lightly.


End file.
